Javier Tebas says it has "hurt" LaLiga to lose Lionel Messi but pinned the blame at the door of Barcelona for refusing to accept a contentious financial arrangement.
LaLiga has struck a €2.7billion (£2.3bn) deal with CVC Capital Partners, one that will see the private equity firm acquire 10 per cent of the commercial business.
In turn, the other 90 per cent of the investment would be used to help cash-strapped clubs across the top two tiers of Spanish football as they cope with the long-term financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Both Madrid and Barca have spoken out against the proposal, while on Wednesday the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) insisted it was "totally illegal."
Madrid and Barca allege the agreement includes all clubs' audiovisual rights for the next 50 years, with Los Blancos taking legal action as they were not properly consulted.
However, the deal will go ahead as planned after a general assembly voted overwhelmingly in favour on Thursday, though Barca and Madrid are two of the four clubs to have opted out of the agreement.
Speaking after the proposal was passed, LaLiga president Tebas was adamant Barca could well have kept hold of Messi – who has now joined Paris Saint-Germain as a free agent – had they signed up.
"I don't know exactly what Barca are doing to lower their wage-bill — with the CVC money they would have had around €40m more," Tebas said.
"It could have been for Messi, or others, to make a more competitive squad. We are hurt by Messi leaving, for sure, but there is no clause in any TV deal which sees us get less money without Messi, although it could hurt companies who are looking to add subscribers and fans of the biggest clubs.
"In LaLiga we've always wanted to have the best players but then Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar left and Messi has now left.
"I'd say it's probably been quite traumatic because for a whole month the president of Barcelona kept saying everything was going well and all of a sudden, one afternoon, the whole transaction went down.
"So it's a real shame that Messi has left but we've worked a lot to ensure our value in broadcasting rights doesn't go down.
"I'm convinced that the fans of Barcelona in Spain will still watch Barcelona as well whether or not Messi is playing for them.
"We signed recently an eight-year contract with ESPN and there was no clause that obliged us to have Messi playing for our league. Who knows in eight years' time who is playing in the Spanish league. They're important, the players, and they help, but they're not essential."
Tebas also hit out at Madrid and Barca for "hampering" the process, suggesting the two giants of Spanish football are instead invested in developing a European Super League.
"Everything that LaLiga do, Real and Barcelona try to block it," Tebas said, as reported via The Athletic. "But we keep growing anyway, and it will continue to grow whether all clubs agree to this deal or not.
"Real and Barca do not want the national leagues to develop and grow stronger. That would not benefit their Super League project. They want most of the money to flow to them.
"Real Madrid have been for eight years hampering our attempts to grow LaLiga's TV revenues, [former Barcelona president Josep Maria] Bartomeu was with them in that too."
According to Tebas, CVC are investing to develop the league, rather than salvage the finances of Spanish clubs.
"CVC were interested because of how we have developed, without help from Madrid or Barca. CVC have not come here to bail us out — they are not here because of the pandemic," he said.
"Only 15 per cent of the money can be used to pay off debts, 70 per cent is for investment in infrastructure. So they are not here to bail out Spanish football, but to help build a stronger league."
Flick: Barcelona must 'eliminate mistakes' to claim Champions League win
Barcelona's recent form is a worry for Hansi Flick as they looked to end a two-match winless run against Brest in the Champions League.
Barca went on a remarkable seven-game winning streak through October and early November before stumbling to a 1-0 loss at Real Sociedad and a 2-2 draw at Celta Vigo in LaLiga, with Lamine Yamal absent from both matches.
After losing their opening Champions League match to Monaco, Barcelona have since won three in a row, including a thumping 4-1 win over Bayern Munich.
Flick, who took charge in May, said his young squad need to learn to cope with adversity and that a positive result against Brest would be a good start.
"The important thing is to win and that is our focus for tomorrow's game," Flick told a press conference. "It's about eliminating the mistakes, this is important. We have a lot of things we can do better with the ball and this is the focus.
"We have a young team, the youngest in LaLiga, and it's not always an easy ride... It is important that the players know that they are good, that they have quality and that they have to stick together.
"We want to teach them and I always think positively. It's a young team and during the season it's normal to have times like this. For me, the important thing is to learn from it."
Barcelona will again be without Yamal for their Champions League tie as he continues to recover from an ankle sprain, with the team having lost all three LaLiga games which he has not started this season.
He has been pivotal to the Blaugrana this campaign and is the only player across Europe's big five leagues to complete 25+ dribbles (34), create 25+ chances (26), have 25+ shots (39), score 5+ goals (five) and provide 5+ assists (seven).
"We all know how talented he [Yamal] is and how his quality on the pitch can impact a game," Flick added.
"Lamine has a quality that allows you to have more control of possession but also makes the opponent give us more space.
"I think and hope that this will be the last game he misses because [on Monday] he was looking very good [in training] but we will have to wait. I hope that on Saturday he will be an option... maybe from the bench... but we'll see."
Defender Inigo Martinez backed his teammates to overcome Yamal's absence.
"We know how important Lamine is... he gives us a lot, is a difference maker who pushes the defensive line back, he is aggressive, generates assists and a lot of fear in the opponent," Martinez said.
"He is vital and very important, but that doesn't mean that the next player to come on won't be up to the similar level.
"Anyone who jumps in at Barcelona needs to be capable of playing at the highest level. The day that Lamine doesn't play, and we win, this chat that we can't win without him will vanish. We have enough [in the] squad to win every game."
Guardiola demands commitment from Man City players after losing run
Pep Guardiola says Manchester City players have to be completely committed to the club's cause as they look to end their poor run against Feyenoord.
City's losing streak stretched to five matches when Tottenham stunned the Premier League champions with a 4-0 win at the Etihad on Saturday, marking the first time Guardiola has lost five games in a row in his managerial career.
It is also the first time the club have lost five consecutive matches in all competitions since April 2006. In fact, City are the first reigning top-flight champions to lose five games in a row in all competitions since Chelsea in March 1956.
Their campaign has been hindered by a rash of injuries, with Ballon d'Or winner Rodri, Ruben Dias, Mateo Kovacic, Jeremy Doku and Oscar Bobb among those currently on the sidelines.
Guardiola, who signed a two-year contract extension at City last week, has led them to 18 major trophies, including six Premier League titles and a Champions League crown, and urged the team to stick to their philosophy.
"Look at where we've come from. It's so difficult to defend the success we have had, that's why I'm so relaxed. That is why I want the commitment, the commitment, the commitment and the commitment," Guardiola told reporters on Monday.
"Just being ourselves isn't enough, we have to show commitment every day.
"Just because this team won a lot, a lot, a lot for many, many, many years. I think in the situation, we have to go direct to our principles, change less more than ever.
"We create a lot of chances. We're not winning the duels. We have to run backwards because our first centre-backs are not there. Rodri is not there.
"We normally play four central defenders, but we have injuries, we had to play [Ilkay] Gundogan, our best attacking midfielder, as a defensive midfielder because of injuries ... What do we have to do? Insist. If not Tuesday, next Sunday. If not, the next game. We keep trying."
City are currently eight points adrift of leaders Liverpool, who they face on Sunday, in the Premier League, and Guardiola said his side were not, at present, ready to win the league but stressed that this phase will pass.
"We need to win one game. I want the players to perform well. In certain departments, we need more focus. It will pass. It's going to rain tomorrow, life goes on," he added.
City are 10th in the 36-team Champions League table with seven points from four games, two points off the automatic qualification places. Feyenoord are a point behind in 21st.
After drawing their opener in the competition, Guardiola's side recorded big wins over Slovan Bratislava and Sparta Prague before falling to Sporting CP in their most recent outing.
Asked how he planned to turn City's form around, the Spaniard said: "Prepare for the next game, try to beat them, which is Feyenoord. I don't know any other way.
"It's the same as winning seven games in a row? What should I change? Impossible. The players have played a lot of minutes, we have players who are injured. It's unusual."
Hayes has 'smile' back after stress made her feel 'unwell' at Chelsea
Emma Hayes revealed she feels refreshed as the United States head coach after stress at the end of her time at Chelsea made her feel "unwell".
Hayes was in charge of the Blues for 12 years, during which she won seven Women's Super League titles, including each of the last five between 2019-20 and 2023-24.
Overall, she oversaw 345 games in all competitions, winning 244 of those (70.72%-win rate).
The 48-year-old left Chelsea at the end of last season, pulling off a stunning comeback in the WSL title race to beat Manchester City to the title on goal difference, and took over as the USA women's head coach in May.
She led the team to Olympic gold in her first tournament, going unbeaten on their tournament run in Paris.
Asked about the perks of international football compared to a domestic level, Hayes admitted the latter had taken its toll on her.
"I don't have to sacrifice the things that made me healthy. I didn't feel healthy at the end, I actually felt unwell at the end of my time at Chelsea," she said in a press conference.
"It wasn't pressure, it was the stress and toll it took on me and doing that during menopause was even harder.
"To get on top of all of those things, I've got my mojo back and my smile and enjoyment back, which I didn't realise I had lost."
The USA will face England at Wembley on Saturday, and Hayes will face off against some of her former players, with Millie Bright, Hannah Hampton and Aggie Beever-Jones in the Lionesses squad.
Hayes, though, is determined to keep her unbeaten start as USA head coach intact against her home nation.
"I'm looking forward to seeing Sarina [Wiegman]," she said. "Of course, I need to go through a weird moment when the national anthems are being played.
"I'll hum along to it [God Save the King] being the English person I am, but also the same for the US one because I love it, I love both anthems.
"Beyond that weird moment and coming up against players I've gone to war with, it's business come kick-off. I hope it's an entertaining game and a sell-out."
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